Prince Charles

The Passions and Paradoxes of An Improbable Life

A New York Times Bestselling AuthorFrom the author of Elizabeth the Queen comes an illuminating and revelatory new biography of the man who has waited his whole life to be king. The first major biography of Prince Charles in over twenty years brings to life the real man, drawing on extensive access to his inner circle and filled with new insights into his family and his two marriages.

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Very interesting reading, with a good distribution of childhood, the "Diana years," and more recent material. I thought the author did a fine job of balancing the man's good and the weak characteristics. I have a new sympathy for Charles, while still raising my eyebrows over much of what he stands for.

Here's the thing: I'm a bit of an Anglophile so this was right up my alley. But if felt like the author lost her steam about 2/3 in and was just reciting facts and timelines, which made it a dry read. Also, not very much on his childhood.

An excellent and very up-to-date review of Charles' life - which has definitely been an interesting one! What I really enjoy with this author is that she presents the facts in a very readable and easily-followed manner, while not taking sides herself. She just simply tells it like it is and lets the reader make their own judgments.

If you know nothing about Charles, this is a good book to read. This was not an authorized biography but the author did have access to several good sources. The book tries to make sense of his marriage to Diana while explaining the attraction between him and Camilla. The author clearly shows how avant-gardiste Charles was and that he should be a good King. We also discover that he was a good father to Harry and a William. Interesting.

Although normally not a fan of any royal family [none should exist today, I believe], I confess to finding this specific royal interesting: anyone who has gone through military training in all branches of the armed forces is a cut above [having served in two military branches in America, I have an idea of what I'm talking about]. Might be an interesting read . . . .